Chicago White Sox starter Shane Smith uses curveball as an effective weapon in a 8-1 over the Detroit Tigers

Chicago Tribune

3 days ago

Coming off a three-homer game on Monday, Detroit Tigers designated hitter Kerry Carpenter found himself in a position for more damage, batting with two runners on and two outs in the third inning on Tuesday at Rate Field.
But Chicago White Sox starter Shane Smith had the perfect plan of attack. He buried a curveball low and in, and Carpenter swung and missed for the third strike to end the threat.
'Just try to keep him off-balanced a little bit,' Smith said of his approach during that matchup. 'He's a really good hitter, he'll pick up on your patterns of what you're trying to do. Whether it's soft, hard, soft, hard, or you stay in one spot too much.
'Didn't want to give him something that he really liked and the curveball felt like the right pitch at the time.'
Smith had one of his top performances of the season, allowing three hits in 5 1/3 scoreless innings for the Sox in an 8-1 victory in front of 12,308.
'I think introducing the curveball a little bit more was a nice addition, making sure they're not leaning over the plate with changeups and fastballs outside, establishing some inside fastball,' Smith said.
Smith struck out six and walked two in the 85-pitch outing.
'Another great outing by Shane,' manager Will Venable said. 'I thought tonight he was really aggressive with the fastball. Got a lot of swing-and-miss on it, really set things up for him.'
Michael A. Taylor supplied a chunk of the offense with a bases-loaded walk in the fourth and a three-run home run in the sixth as the Sox snapped a four-game losing streak.
'Great day for Michael,' Venable said. 'He's had really good at-bats. The opportunity for him has not been as consistent as with some other guys. So he continues to go out there and give us a shot and tonight was a great example of quality at-bats and big results.'
Austin Slater had a two-run double in the seventh and Sox added two more runs in the eighth in their first home win against the Tigers since June 4, 2023, snapping a streak of 11 straight losses since that victory.
It was a much-needed offensive output for the Sox, who had scored a total of six runs during their four-game skid. The Sox went 5-for-9 with runners in scoring position Tuesday.
'We did a really good job today on the offensive part, especially with guys in scoring position,' catcher Edgar Quero said. 'We were missing a lot with guys in scoring position but today we did a really good job.'
While the Sox finally broke through at the plate, Smith made sure the Tigers' bats remained quiet.
Photos: Chicago White Sox beat the Detroit Tigers 8-1 at Rate FieldDetroit's leadoff batters reached in three of the first four innings. But Smith made sure it didn't become an issue, whether it was getting a double play in the first inning or striking out two batters in the second.
'Just real consistent,' Venable said of Smith's season to date. The right-hander has a 2.45 ERA.
'The performance has been great, but just how he goes about his business working through traffic, bouncing back when things don't go his way,' Venable said. 'He's just been extremely consistent and obviously the performance speaks for itself.'
Smith exited with the Sox leading 1-0 in the sixth. Cam Booser walked a batter with two outs, but struck out Spencer Torkelson to keep the Sox ahead.
The momentum carried over to the bottom of the inning with Taylor's three-run home run.
The Sox led 6-1 in the eighth, but the Tigers loaded the bases with one out. Brandon Eisert struck out Wenceel Pérez and Dillon Dingler lined out to right fielder Mike Tauchman.
'Booser coming in, walking a guy and then kind of buckled down again,' Smith said. 'And (Eisert) to get out of a bases-loaded jam. That's what it takes to win games and we're doing a good job with that.'
Left-hander Jared Shuster will start for Wednesday in what is expected to be a bullpen game for the Sox. Shuster has a 6.14 ERA in 11 appearances (one start) with 11 strikeouts in 14 2/3 innings.